1991 Montreal Expos season

The 1991 Montreal Expos season was the 23rd season in franchise history. After several winning seasons, the Expos faltered in 1991, winning only 20 of its first 49 games. Manager Buck Rodgers was replaced as manager by Tom Runnells. The team ultimately finished 71–90. The highlight of the season was Dennis Martinez pitching a perfect game at Dodger Stadium on July 28, 1991.

1991 Montreal Expos
League	National League
Division	East
Ballpark	Olympic Stadium
City	Montreal
Record	71–90
Divisional place	6th
Owners	Claude Brochu
General managers	Dave Dombrowski
Managers	Buck Rodgers, Tom Runnells
Television	CBC Television/CTV Television Network (Dave Van Horne, Ken Singleton) Télévision de Radio-Canada (Claude Raymond, Raymond Lebrun) The Sports Network (Ken Singleton, Dave Van Horne) RDS Network (Denis Casavant, Rodger Brulotte)
Radio	CFCF (English) (Dave Van Horne, Bobby Winkles, Ken Singleton, Elliott Price) CKAC (French) (Jacques Doucet, Rodger Brulotte, Pierre Arsenault)
← 1990 Seasons 1992 →

Offseason

• November 15, 1990: Scott Service was signed as a free agent by the Expos.^[1]
• December 3, 1990: Rolando Roomes was released by the Montreal Expos.^[2]
• December 23, 1990: Tim Raines, Jeff Carter, and a player to be named later were traded by the Expos to the Chicago White Sox for Iván Calderón and Barry Jones. The Expos completed the deal by sending Mario Brito (minors) to the White Sox on February 15, 1991.^[3]
• February 15, 1991: Ron Hassey signed as a free agent by the Expos.^[4]
• February 27, 1991: Rick Mahler signed as a free agent by the Expos.^[5]
• March 30, 1991: Mike Aldrete was released by the Expos.^[6]

Spring training

The Expos held spring training at West Palm Beach Municipal Stadium in West Palm Beach, Florida – a facility they shared with the Atlanta Braves. It was their 15th season at the stadium; they had conducted spring training there from 1969 to 1972 and since 1981.

Regular season

On May 23, 1991, the Expos were no-hit by the Phillies' Tommy Greene. Greene was starting for only the second time in the season and 15th time in his major league career, and was pitching in place of Danny Cox who had suffered a pulled groin in his last start. Greene became the first visiting pitcher to hurl a no-hitter in Montreal's history as the Phillies defeated the Expos, 2-0 before an Olympic Stadium crowd of 8,833.^[7]

• July 26, 1991: Mark Gardner pitched 9 innings of no-hit baseball against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. It was tied at 0-0 in the tenth; however, versatile utility man Lenny Harris singled for the Dodgers breaking it up.
• July 28, 1991: In a 2–0 victory, Dennis Martínez pitched a perfect game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. The final out was recorded by Marquis Grissom in center field off a lazy fly ball off the bat of Chris Gwynn. Dennis shut out the Dodgers in his previous meeting with them on April 30, 1991, the perfect game marked the 25th straight inning the Dodgers failed to score a run off him.
• September 8, 1991: The Expos had to play their last 13 home games on the road, due to a concrete beam from Olympic Stadium's roof collapsing on September 13.

Season standings

• v
• t
• e

NL East

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Pittsburgh Pirates	98	64	.605	—	52‍–‍32	46‍–‍32
St. Louis Cardinals	84	78	.519	14	52‍–‍32	32‍–‍46
Philadelphia Phillies	78	84	.481	20	47‍–‍36	31‍–‍48
Chicago Cubs	77	83	.481	20	46‍–‍37	31‍–‍46
New York Mets	77	84	.478	20½	40‍–‍42	37‍–‍42
Montreal Expos	71	90	.441	26½	33‍–‍35	38‍–‍55

Record vs. opponents

1991 National League record v t e Sources:
Team	ATL	CHC	CIN	HOU	LAD	MON	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL
Atlanta	—	6–6	11–7	13–5	7–11	5–7	9–3	5–7	9–3	11–7	9–9	9–3
Chicago	6–6	—	4–8	9–3	2–10	10–7	11–6	8–10	7–11	4–8	6–6	10–8
Cincinnati	7–11	8–4	—	9–9	6–12	6–6	5–7	9–3	2–10	8–10	10–8	4–8
Houston	5–13	3–9	9–9	—	8–10	2–10	7–5	7–5	4–8	6–12	9–9	5–7
Los Angeles	11–7	10–2	12–6	10–8	—	5–7	7–5	7–5	7–5	10–8	8–10	6–6
Montreal	7–5	7–10	6–6	10–2	7–5	—	4–14	4–14	6–12	6–6	7–5	7–11
New York	3–9	6–11	7–5	5–7	5–7	14–4	—	11–7	6–12	7–5	6–6	7–11
Philadelphia	7-5	10–8	3–9	5–7	5–7	14–4	7–11	—	6–12	9–3	6–6	6–12
Pittsburgh	3–9	11–7	10–2	8–4	5–7	12–6	12–6	12–6	—	7–5	7–5	11–7
San Diego	7–11	8–4	10–8	12–6	8–10	6–6	5–7	3–9	5–7	—	11–7	9–3
San Francisco	9–9	6–6	8–10	9–9	10–8	5–7	6–6	6–6	5–7	7–11	—	4–8
St. Louis	3–9	8–10	8–4	7–5	6–6	11–7	11–7	12–6	7–11	3–9	8–4	—

Opening Day starters

• Oil Can Boyd
• Iván Calderón
• Delino DeShields
• Andrés Galarraga
• Dave Martinez
• Spike Owen
• Gilberto Reyes
• Larry Walker
• Tim Wallach

Notable transactions

• April 1, 1991: Otis Nixon and Boi Rodriguez (minors) were traded by the Expos to the Atlanta Braves for Jimmy Kremers and a player to be named later. The Braves completed the deal by sending Keith Morrison (minors) to the Expos on June 3.^[8]
• June 3, 1991: 1991 Major League Baseball Draft
  • Cliff Floyd was drafted by the Expos in the 1st round (14th pick) ft. Player signed June 15, 1991.^[9]
  • Kirk Rueter was drafted by the Expos in the 18th round. Player signed June 21, 1991.^[10]
• June 4, 1991: Kenny Williams was selected off waivers by the Expos from the Toronto Blue Jays.^[11]
• June 10, 1991: Rick Mahler was released by the Expos.^[5]
• July 15, 1991: Tim Burke was traded by the Expos to the New York Mets for Ron Darling and Mike Thomas.^[12]
• July 19, 1991: Scott Service was purchased from the Expos by the Chunichi Dragons.^[1]
• July 21, 1991: Oil Can Boyd was traded by the Expos to the Texas Rangers for Jonathan Hurst, Joey Eischen, and a player to be named later. The Rangers completed the deal by sending Travis Buckley (minors) to the Expos on September 1.^[13]
• July 31, 1991: Ron Darling was traded by the Expos to the Oakland Athletics for Matt Grott and Russell Cormier (minors).^[12]

The Perfect Game

On July 28, 1991, Dennis Martínez became the first Latin-born pitcher to throw a perfect game, the 13th in major league history, against the Los Angeles Dodgers.^[14]

Scorecard

July 28, Dodger Stadium, Chávez Ravine, California

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Montreal	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	2	4	0
Los Angeles	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2[15]
W: Dennis Martínez   L: Mike Morgan
HRs: None, Attendance: 45,560.[16] Length of game: 2:14. Umpires: HP: Larry Poncino, 1B: Bruce Froemming, 2B: Dana DeMuth, 3B: Greg Bonin

Roster

1991 Montreal Expos
Roster
Pitchers 47 Brian Barnes 23 Oil Can Boyd 44 Tim Burke 15 Ron Darling 39 Jeff Fassero 41 Steve Frey 28 Mark Gardner 42 Chris Haney 50 Barry Jones 48 Bill Long 42 Rick Mahler 32 Dennis Martínez 43 Chris Nabholz 48 Doug Piatt 51 Mel Rojas 34 Scott Ruskin 55 Bill Sampen 26 Dave Schmidt 40 Dave Wainhouse		Catchers 20 Mike Fitzgerald 24 Ron Hassey  2 Gilberto Reyes 26 Nelson Santovenia Infielders 25 Bret Barberie  4 Delino DeShields 16 Tom Foley 14 Andrés Galarraga 11 Spike Owen 29 Tim Wallach		Outfielders 38 Eric Bullock 22 Iván Calderón  9 Marquis Grissom  1 Dave Martinez  3 Junior Noboa  6 Nikco Riesgo 23 John Vander Wal 33 Larry Walker 44,12 Kenny Williams		Manager 37 Buck Rodgers (Fired on June 2, 1991) 10 Tom Runnells (Promoted on June 2, 1991) Coaches 36 Larry Bearnarth (Pitching) 21 Tommy Harper (First Base) 17 Rafael Landestoy (Bench) 31 Ken Macha (Bullpen)  6 Jerry Manuel (Third Base) (Hired on June 2, 1991) 12 Hal McRae (Hitting) (Fired on June 2, 1991) 10 Tom Runnells (Third Base) (Promoted to Manager on June 2, 1991) 35 Jay Ward (Hitting) (Hired on June 2, 1991)

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
C	Gilberto Reyes	83	207	45	.217	0	13
1B	Andrés Galarraga	107	375	82	.219	9	33
2B	Delino DeShields	151	563	134	.238	10	51
3B	Tim Wallach	151	577	130	.225	13	73
SS	Spike Owen	139	424	108	.255	3	26
LF	Iván Calderón	134	470	141	.300	19	75
CF	Marquis Grissom	148	558	149	.267	6	39
RF	Larry Walker	137	487	141	.290	16	64

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
Dave Martinez	124	396	117	.295	7	42
Mike Fitzgerald	71	198	40	.202	4	28
Tom Foley	86	168	35	.208	0	15
Bret Barberie	57	136	48	.353	2	18
Ron Hassey	52	119	27	.227	1	14
Nelson Santovenia	41	96	24	.250	2	14
Junior Noboa	67	95	23	.242	1	2
Eric Bullock	73	72	16	.222	1	6
Kenny Williams	34	70	19	.271	0	1
John Vander Wal	21	61	13	.213	1	8
Nikco Riesgo	4	7	1	.143	0	0

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Dennis Martínez	31	222.0	14	11	2.39	123
Mark Gardner	27	168.1	9	11	3.85	107
Brian Barnes	28	160.0	5	8	4.22	117
Chris Nabholz	24	153.2	8	7	3.63	99
Oil Can Boyd	19	120.1	6	8	3.52	82
Chris Haney	16	84.2	3	7	4.04	51
Ron Darling	3	17.0	0	2	7.41	11

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Bill Sampen	43	92.1	9	5	4.00	52
Rick Mahler	10	37.1	1	3	3.62	17

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Barry Jones	77	4	9	13	3.35	46
Scott Ruskin	64	4	4	6	4.24	46
Jeff Fassero	51	2	5	8	2.44	42
Mel Rojas	37	3	3	6	3.75	37
Tim Burke	37	3	4	5	4.11	25
Steve Frey	31	0	1	1	4.99	21
Doug Piatt	21	0	0	0	2.60	29
Dave Schmidt	4	0	1	0	10.38	3
Bill Long	3	0	0	0	10.80	0
Dave Wainhouse	2	0	1	0	6.75	1

Award winners

• Marquis Grissom, National League Stolen Base Leader, 76 ^[17]
• Dennis Martínez, National League ERA Champion, 2.39
• Dennis Martínez, Pitcher of the Month, July

All-Stars

1991 Major League Baseball All-Star Game

• Iván Calderón, outfield, starter
• Dennis Martínez, reserve

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Indianapolis Indians	American Association	Jerry Manuel and Pat Kelly
AA	Harrisburg Senators	Eastern League	Mike Quade
A	West Palm Beach Expos	Florida State League	Felipe Alou
A	Rockford Expos	Midwest League	Pat Kelly and Rob Leary
A	Sumter Flyers	South Atlantic League	Lorenzo Bundy
A-Short Season	Jamestown Expos	New York–Penn League	Ed Creech
Rookie	GCL Expos	Gulf Coast League	Keith Snider

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: West Palm Beach, Jamestown, GCL Expos^[18]

References

1. Scott Service page at Baseball Reference
2. "Rolando Roomes Stats".
3. Tim Raines page at Baseball Reference
4. Ron Hassey page at Baseball Reference
5. Rick Mahler page at Baseball Reference
6. Mike Aldrete page at Baseball Reference
7. Murray Chass (May 24, 1991). "BASEBALL; From Sub to Sublime: No-Hitter for Phillies' Greene". New York Times.
8. Otis Nixon page at Baseball Reference
9. Cliff Floyd page at Baseball Reference
10. Kirk Rueter page at Baseball Reference
11. Kenny Williams page at Baseball Reference
12. Ron Darling page at Baseball Reference
13. Oil Can Boyd page at Baseball Reference
14. "Baseball's Perfect Games: Dennis Martinez, Montreal Expos". The BASEBALL Page.com. Archived from the original on November 13, 2006. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
15. Dennis Martinez Perfect Game Box Score by Baseball Almanac
16. Box Score of Game played on Sunday, July 28, 1991 at Dodger Stadium
17. Stolen Bases Single Season National League Leaders by Baseball Almanac
18. Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007

External links

• 1991 Montreal Expos team page at Baseball Reference
• 1991 Montreal Expos team page at www.baseball-almanac.com